Posts by Glenn
There Were Heroes By The Hundreds: Attack on the USS Franklin
On the morning of March 19, 1945, John “Jack” Hensel, from Utica, New York, a 20-year-old turret gunner on a TBM Avenger torpedo bomber, went to his torpedo bomber squadron’s ready room to be briefed on his next mission.1 His ship The USS Franklin, an Essex-class carrier, was within one hour’s flying time of nearly…
Read MoreThe WW II Alliance Between Germany and Japan
“Our greatest triumph lies in the fact that we achieved the impossible, Allied military unity of action.”1 –General George C. Marshall, 1945 When you look at the history of the Second World War and see the success of the alliance among the Allies, especially the U.S. and the United Kingdom, you may ask, what prevented the…
Read MoreUSS Texas Plays Role In Introduction of Radar
My love of history has been sparked by many things, but chief among them was living in San Antonio as a young boy.There I visited the Alamo and other historic missions, saw John Wayne’s movie, “The Alamo,” and visited the battleship USS Texas (BB-35) on a trip to Houston. Our parents, my sister, and I…
Read More34th Annual Symposium “1942: The Perilous Year”
Ahhh, September!!!! There are three things I look forward to in September. First, (American) football-college and pro. You never know how things are going to turn out. (Ask LSU about that missed extra point the other day!) Second, the prospect of cooler weather. Here in Texas, we usually get a cool(er) front through about the…
Read More#ASkMKeAboutLidice
I’m departing from my usual posts about the USS Franklin and World War II in the Pacific Theater to repost this. I hope you will read it. The following post is from the Facebook page, “Historia Obscurum.” In the summer and fall of 1942, a strange phenomenon began springing up in distant corners of the…
Read MoreBook Recommendation: The Sailor’s Bookshelf: Fifty Books To Know The Sea
This morning I was searching for a podcast to listen to during my workout at my gym. I do strength training and usually spend about an hour each time I go. I favor podcasts related to the research I am doing for my book, “Heroes By The Hundreds: The Saga of the USS Franklin.” I…
Read MoreThree Things We Can Learn From Someone Awarded The Medal Of Honor
Today’s post discusses three things we can learn from a Medal of Honorrecipient. On 19 March 1945, the USS Franklin, an Essex-class carrier wasattacked just after dawn by a Japanese bomber. She was part of a huge US Navyfleet called Task Force 58. The bomber dropped two bombs of 550 pounds eachthat started a conflagration…
Read MoreAttending The 2022 USS Franklin Reunion
Two weeks ago, I had the pleasure of attending a reunion of crewmembers and their families of the USS Franklin. The three-day reunion was held in Fredericksburg, TX at the Museum of the Pacific War and at the Inn on Barons Creek. There were two of the three surviving crew members present and 30 to…
Read MoreUSS Franklin Timeline
The USS Franklin (CV-13) played a key role in the operations of Task Force 58 during the march across the Central Pacific. If ever there was a gallant ship, she was one. Here is a timeline, courtesy of the book, “USS Franklin (CV-13) Original Documents 1943-1946.” pp. 76-77 (Courtesy of Don Price) 7-Dec-42 Keel laid…
Read MoreNavigator Stephen Jurika
One of the most fascinating people involved in the events onboard the USS Franklin was Stephen Jurika. Born in California, his family moved to the Philippines during his childhood. He grew up speaking several languages including Japanese, and after graduating from the US Naval Academy in 1933, served on board several cruisers before entering the…
Read More